First trial of a Chinese citizen spying on the Tibetan Diaspora in Sweden

A 49-year-old man from China was charged with spying on Tibetan refugees in Sweden, Swedish Radio reported on Thursday.

The case is pursued by the counterespionage department of the Swedish security service, Säpo, and creates a precedent for other EU member states; this is the first time a Chinese national is being brought to trial for espionage over the Tibetan community anywhere.

The representative of the Tibetan émigré community in Sweden, Jamyang Choedon, says the community has known of the case for over a year.

told Radio Sweden that they have known about the case for a year, but it means a lot that the Swedish security service is going ahead with a formal prosecution, and they hope it will show the way for other countries.